A leaking school roof is to cost taxpayers more than £1.1 million to replace, Kent County Council (KCC) papers have revealed.

Kings Hill School in Crispin Way, Kings Hill, for children aged two to 11, was opened in 1997 but started to experience problems a few years later.

Since the mid-2000s, the wooden tiles have been exposed to the weather and suffered leaks as well as being covered by detritus and moss.

Surveyors concluded it is beyond repair.

Soon, KCC members will have to decide on approving the allocation of £1.1m from the Children’s, Young People and Education Modernisation and Planned Maintenance Budgets to replace the roof.

With the go ahead, the first phase of the work would start this month and the second in January next year.

Kings Hill, rated a ‘good’ school by Ofsted inspectors, was constructed over one floor in an S-shape with cedar shingle roof tiles, which were made in Canada.

A KCC report noted that since the mid-2000s the “problem has worsened due to the age and condition of the wooden tiles.”

It adds: “The roof is set at a very low pitch and the school is surrounded by woodland and built into a dip in the land, meaning that leaves and moss from the surrounding trees sit on the roof.

“The roof has had issues for a number of years and multiple reports and referrals from the school have been received to which extensive patching and repair works have been carried out.”

Remedial works have been carried out since 2018 but full-scale replacement could not be progressed because of Covid-19 and planning issues due to the make-up of the roof.

Originally the planning approval meant like-for-like tiles would have had to be used but the new roof will be made of a durable metal sheeting with a lifespan of up to a century.

New tiles manufactured in Canada would have taken a year to make and would not be guaranteed to last more than 15 years.

A fresh planning application was submitted to use different materials for the replacement roof.

The report states: “Tenders have been returned at a cost of £890k for the works plus £100k in professional fees. This has been independently verified as an appropriate cost in today’s market.”

Phase one for the back of the building will cost £628,000 has been instructed. and the second at the school’s front will cost £262,000.

However, KCC has been advised by its professional cost consultant to make an allowance of £1,100,000 for both phases due to the risk that additional costs will be incurred during construction.

Kings Hill School’s acting head teacher Kate Harris was approached for a comment.

Kent education expert Peter Read said: “It is great news for the school but one wonders who thought cedar tiles shipped in from Canada was a good idea in the first place!”

The Children’s, Young People and Education Services Cabinet Committee meets on September 12 to discuss the issue.